In recent years, stored value cards, such as prepaid gift cards, have become increasingly popular among consumers. Very often the cards are given by a purchaser (of the card) to a recipient in lieu of cash, so that the recipient will have the means to purchase goods or services from a card issuing merchant. In some cases the purchaser may desire this arrangement so that the recipient does not use the card for purposes other than those intended by the purchaser. As an example, a parent may purchase a stored value card that can be used by a child only at the issuing merchant, so that the child may not use the card for goods other than those sold by that merchant.
One drawback of existing cards is that there is no effective means for controlling card use at the merchant. For example, a parent may give a card issued by a restaurant to a child away at college, desiring that the child use the card in increments for individual meals. However, there is often no effective means to prevent the child from using the card in ways not contemplated by the parent. While cards have been known to place maximum limits on individual purchases (e.g., a $100 gift card may only be used in $10 increments), there is no means available to prevent the recipient of the card from conducting many transactions over a short period of time, quickly depleting the value of the card.